Friday, May 14, 2010

ITALIAN WINE BISCUITS - BISCUITS AU VIN

Not long ago, I bought a couple of cheeses (Red Leicester & Welsh Mature Cheddar) from "Jim's British Market", a British supermarket situated in neighboring France (Saint Genis-Pouilly). As it is not a delicacy we can eat on a weekly basis, we wanted to enjoy those yummy cheeses with a good glass of wine and the appropriateaccompaniment...

I also had two wonderful jellies - Green Jalapeño Jelly From Texas, USA & Vin Santo Jelly from Italy - that I wanted to serve together with some good semi-hard gourmet cheese, it was the perfect opportunity to bake savory lush crackers. So, knowing that my "The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: The All-Purpose Baking Companion" contains many great cracker/biscuit ideas, it was without surprise that I found what I was looking for. As expected, the baked goods I made were very successful and turned out right; KAF's recipes are always a safe bet,

Considering the fact that pepper and Porto go very well with Cheddar-style cheeses, it was self-evident that KAF's sophisticated "Italian Wine Biscuits" ("Biscotti Di Vino" in Italian) would be the perfect pairing. Needless to say that we were delighted by their wonderful taste and pleasant texture.

Those dense and bready "Italian Wine Biscuits" are a bit like a cross between crackers (not as hard and flat, though) and scones (not as soft and fluffy either). They are crisp, semisweet biscuits which have a addictive, yet non overpowering peppery fragrance, subtle flavors of red wine and a delicate touch of salt.Terrific!~ Italian Wine Biscuits ~Recipe by The King Arthur Flour.

Method:1. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, pepper, sugar, salt and baking powder.2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wine and vegetable oil.3. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well till the mixture is smooth, about 1 minute (see remarks).4. Place the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour, or overnight.5. Break off a piece of dough about the size of a walnut (about 3/4 ounce), and roll it into a ball. Poke a hole in the middle of the ball to make a small "bagel-shaped" biscuit.6. Place it on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough.7. Bake the biscuits in a preheated 180° C (350° F) oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until they're golden brown (they'll actually look kind of purple; that's OK).8. Remove them from the oven, and cool completely on a wire rack.

Remarks:The greater amount of sugar will make a biscuit which is just about as sweet as a cookie; the lesser amount will yield a more "savory-type" biscuit.I added a little more wine to the mixture which turned out to be a bit too dry.You can also just roll the pastry (1.3cm/0.5 inch) and cut out rounds or squares.Store those biscuits (at room temperature) in airtight containers for 3-4 days.

Serving suggestions:Serve with cheese (perfect with Cheddar, Fontina or Pecorino), jalapeño jelly and with wine, grape juice spritzer, lemon-scented club soda or sangria.

Gorgoeus biscuits Rosa. Almost anything Italian gets my vote and it's nice to see we have the same taste in cheese too :-) Now you've made me long to return to the UK for a tasting with wine. Have a great weekend!

romans say:1 cup sugar1 cup olive oil1 cup wine red or white not sparklingand flour as make a handle dough.I've nevere heard about this savoury version, very very interesting I'm going to use it in next apero :)

I haven't had Italian Wine Biscuits in too long of a time. My grandmother use to make them on special occasions. Time to celebrate, I'd say!!! Thanks for sharing, Rosa. I love the addition of ground black pepper!

Hello Rosa...this buscuit recipe sound very promising. Hubby is in the cheese business, hence a cheese fiesta at least once a week;DI make amazing Porto drenched figs which I keep always on hand to give us the sweet savoury balance to our meal. I'll be soon posting this recipe on my blog.Now...I do have a particular question...speaking of Porto: you do mention it in your article, but not in the recipe. Did I misunderstand something?BTW...this was my first visit...certainly not the last;o)Thanks for sharing and flavourful wishes, Claudia

Hello again Rosa...thanks for passing by and for your lovely comment. And of course for clarifying me on the Porto issue;o) I kinda felt that it was what you meant...however...I just wanted to be certain before filing it in my TO TRY recipes.BTW...I really appreciate your nature scenic photos. I am most happy in that environment. My kitchen comes a very tight second! Soon, hopefully I'll be sharing some more of my photos too.Ta for now and flavourful wishes,Claudia

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